Hamas terrorists opened fire Tuesday evening at Israeli troops operating in the Rafah area, sparking exchanges of fire - a new violation of the ceasefire by the terrorist organization.
IDF forces conducted artillery strikes in response to the attacks and IAF aircraft flew over Rafah.
Earlier in the afternoon, Hamas claimed that the body it planned to hand over “was recently located in a tunnel in the Gaza Strip.”
During a security consultation held by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, officials discussed a range of possible Israeli responses to the ceasefire violation, including airstrikes in Gaza. No decisions have yet been made, and the Prime Minister is expected to decide after further consultations with the United States.
One of the options raised in the meeting was for Israel to seize additional territory in Gaza and expand the boundaries of the so-called “yellow line” area. The meeting was attended by Defense Minister Israel Katz, IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, Maj. Gen. (res.) Nitzan Alon - who coordinates intelligence efforts on hostages and missing persons - and Shin Bet Director David Zini.
Earlier Tuesday, the IDF released footage showing Hamas operatives burying remains belonging to murdered hostage Ofir Tzarfati, whose body had been returned to Israel in a military operation two years ago. After burying the remains, the terrorists staged their “discovery” of them and handed them over to Israel through the Red Cross.
Under the terms of the ceasefire agreement, Hamas was required to return all hostages in its possession within 72 hours. The group released all 20 living hostages it held, but not all of the deceased. So far, Hamas has returned 15 of the 28 fallen hostages held in Gaza before the deal, leaving 13 bodies still in the Strip.